CAC Advocates for Centralized Beneficial Ownership Registers

The Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), under the leadership of Registrar-General and Chief Executive Hussaini Magaji, has called for the harmonization and centralization of Nigeria's beneficial ownership registers. This initiative aims to strengthen the fight against illicit financial flows, money laundering, and the misuse of corporate structures.

Speaking at a training session on the Beneficial Ownership Register for journalists and civil society organizations in Abuja, Magaji emphasized the need for an interconnected system to identify individuals who ultimately own or control companies. He stated that corporate ownership information should not be fragmented across different institutional databases.

The CAC currently maintains a Beneficial Ownership Register, while information for entities in Free Trade Zones is managed by the Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority, and data related to the extractive industries is under the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative. Magaji urged for improved coordination among these institutions to enhance transparency and accountability in corporate ownership.